Content creation applications such as notebook applications, word processing applications, spreadsheet applications, and presentation applications are useful tools for generating and curating content. These and other applications are increasingly including “inking” functionality that lets users input content and interact with the application (and content created therein) through using a pen or stylus (and sometimes fingers or other objects) in a manner evoking a pen on paper. Digital ink can imitate real writing utensils such as pens, pencils or paintbrushes, or it can be used to create visual effects that have no real-world analog.
However, because the system must know how much time has passed since an ink point has been drawn, applying certain ink effects to the drawing of an ink stroke can be challenging. Currently, ink stroke data includes global timestamps. However, global timestamps do not provide the amount of time that has elapsed since the ink point has been drawn.